Auditor to join Azusa council; city treasurer unseated

AZUSA - In the wide-open race for city council, incumbent Robert Gonzales will be joined by auditor Edward Alvarez at the council dais.

Jeffrey Lawrence Cornejo Jr. earned 37 percent of the vote among the field of four candidates for city clerk.

The real surprise came in the city treasurer's race, though, with challenger Arthur Vasquez taking 53 percent of the vote.

Outgoing city clerk Vera Mendoza said 112 provisional ballots were not counted, pending verification from the county recorder's office. Final results will be officially announced at the March 18 council meeting.

"Right now I'm just trying to take it all in, we barely got the results a few minutes ago so we're just celebrating," Alvarez said. "I was nervous the whole time, I thought it was a close race but everybody's hard work paid off."

Incumbent Gonzales was celebrating his victory with family and friends late Tuesday night at Max's Mexican Cuisine.

"We had a large group of candidates this year that made us work extra hard, so the results were very justifying for us," Gonzales said. "Eddie (Alvarez) is going to have a learning curve like we all had to deal with, but he has roots in the community and I think he'll be fine.

"I just want to thank the voters for giving me the opportunity to serve them."

The field of council candidates included prominent community leaders Sandra Benavides, Mark Caro, Mercedes Castro and Jeri Vogel.

The candidates addressed several issues the city faces in the run-up to election day. One of the most important topics of concern was the city's future without redevelopment money, especially as the Gold Line extension is built over the next few years.

Four community members faced off to fill the city clerk's seat, with Cornejo winning the seat with 37 percent of the votes over Stephanie Carmona Mills, Russ Rentschler and Jorge V. Rosales.

The city clerk is elected to serve as a public official whose duties include overseeing elections, tracking public records and administering oaths and affirmations. The four-year, part-time position is being vacated by Vera Mendoza.

"I really didn't have any expectations and I'm very humbled by the whole thing," Cornejo said. "I've been involved in the city for many years but it's a very different perspective from the other end."

Cornejo has experience in archiving and documentation, working on the Cultural and Historical Landmark Commission, among other groups in the city.

City Treasurer Marcene Hamilton lost her seat to challenger Arthur M. Vasquez Jr., who had 53 percent of the vote.

Vasquez is a fourth-generation Azusan who works as an accountant and real estate broker.

"One of the big things in the city is they (residents) don't know who the treasurer is or what they do and a lot of people have questions," he told the Tribune recently. "I want to be more accessible and let people know what's going on" with the city's finances.